Evidence is Mounting that the Haka Unsettles the All Blacks

Evidence is mounting that the haka unsettles the All Blacks more than it does the opposition.

There has always been a view that performing the haka has given the All Blacks an unfair advantage. The Brits, in particular, have issues with it, saying it provides the All Blacks with an exclusive opportunity to intimidate.

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But there is evidence emerging that the haka is more of an emotional hindrance to the All Blacks than an effective means of intimidation. It might be that the haka does a better job of unsettling the All Blacks than the opposition and it hasn’t gone unnoticed by the All Blacks coaches.

“We’re poor starters,” coach Steve Hansen said before last week’s test against England. “We haven’t quite got it right so maybe we are over-aroused or under-aroused.”

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Having such intense emotion in the minute before the game kicks off might be the reason the All Blacks don’t have a track record of starting games well.